Three sanitation workers from Priority Waste are being lauded as saviors after a daring rescue of an elderly woman from a house fire in Mount Clemens, Michigan. According to FOX 2 Detroit, the crew was on a routine trash collection route when they noticed smoke billowing from a home on Inches Street. Driver Gary Whitcher immediately alerted his colleagues and dialed 911.
Norberto Altman, and Keeyon Beaty rushed to the burning building, with Altman kicking down the door in an attempt to reach anyone inside while Beaty aided their efforts. The house, dense with smoke, rendered the act of entering nearly impossible, yet it was through a window these men managed to pull a trapped woman and her dog to safety, reported ClickOnDetroit. The woman refused medical attention despite suffering from smoke inhalation, the fire department confirmed. Tragically, her chihuahua did not survive the ordeal.
Mount Clemens Fire Department acknowledged their lifesaving actions, with Fire Chief Dan Reynolds quoted by WWJ Newsradio as saying that the sanitation workers prevented what could have otherwise been a fatal tragedy. "I won't try to get too churchy on ya, but between you and me, the hand of God intervened," he expressed to the quick-thinking crew.
The workers reflected on the incident, with Beaty feeling that their timely arrival was more than mere coincidence. "Out of all the times for us to get there, it's when she's in trouble, so I feel like it was meant to happen," Beaty told FOX 2 Detroit. Altman also echoed this sentiment, "I feel good that I could save a life – that we were there at the right time," he admitted. The cause of the blaze is still under investigation; although, foul play is not suspected at this time, per the Macomb County Sheriff's Department.
